Centrifugal separator



.May 20, 1930. c. scHMlT'z 1,759,522

CENTRIFUGAL S EPARATOR Filed Jan. '7. 19:50

fr] Ven 50h' Patented May 20, 1930 UNITED STA CARL SCHMITZ, OF OELDE IN WESTFALEN, GERMANY CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATOR Application led January 7, 1930, Serial No. 419,066, and n Germany. January 7, 1929.

My invention relates to centrifugal separators ofthe class commonly employed for separating cream from milk, and in some of its general objects aims'to provide simple,

inexpensive and effective means for securing a circumferentially uniform distribution of the heavier liquid material before the latter reaches the corresponding discharge outlet,

so as to avoid the heretofore encountered pulsating discharge of liquid from the separator, and also to avoid the unbalancing of rotating portions of the separator by an unsymmetrical distribution of its liquid-content.

In centrifugal separators of this class, the outwardly separated heavier portion of the liquid moves upwardly along the interior of the bowl and of the (usually upwardly tapering) bowl cover after a high rate of rotation about the axis ofthe bowl has already been imparted tothis heavier liquid while passing between the superposed rotating,r disks within the bowl. During thisupward movement of the heavier liquid along the inner wall of the bowl, the liquid also encoun ters other liquid portions projected outward-y tating at the high rate necessary for centrifugal separations. n

What is more, this spiral advancing ofthe lskim milk or other heavy liquid portion causes an unequal distribution of the heavy liquid portion circumfer'enti ally of the bowl, and may also cause a circumferentially unbalanced distribution of any sediment settling in the bowl, both of which actions pro` duce an unbalancing of the rotating assem- 5 bly which not only causes undesirable vibrations but also leads to excessive wea-r on the bearings.

In separators of large capacity, it has heretofore been customary to provide the riser wall of the separator bowl with webs extending inwardly toward the disks, so as to form channels for guiding the liquid in upward paths along this wall. But such webs have proven objectionable because they prevent the liquid from distributing itself uniformly circumferentially of the bowl and hence unbalance the separator, because they cause any sediment in the liquid to deposit in a circumferentially" uneven distribution, and because they make it much more diiiicult to clean the bowl.

My present invention aims to overcome all of the above objections by providing a centrifugal separator construction in which the separated heavier liquid portion can freely distribute and equalize itself in the major` portion of the'bowl, in which any sediment can likewise distribute itself uniformly circumferentially of the bowl, and in which the rotation of this liquid'portion is checked above the outer edges of most of the separatorv disks without increasing the diiiiculty of cleaning the bowl.

With this in mind, my invention aims to provide a housing for the rotating disks of a separator, so constructed as to leave thev separated heavier liquid entirely free to move between the disks and the adjacent lateral wall of the housing until the liquid approaches the height at which spiral movements or eddies would be imparted to the liquid in the usual separator constructions, and to then guide the liquid upwardly and radially inward during its entire passage from that portion to the discharge outlet. Furthermore, in which rthe above mentioned improved effects are secured by extremely simple and 4inexpensive means, and in which these means also serve to produce a circumferentally uniform distribution of the portions ofthe said heavier liquid between the disks, thereby increasing the efficiency of the separator. l

More particularly, my invention aims to provide a separator-bowl and-bowl cover construction which will afford the above recited advantages and which can readily7 be used in substitution for the bowl and owl covers of separators of present. constructions.

Still further and' alsol more detailed objects will appear from the following specification and from the accompanying drawings, 1n which Fig. 1 is a central and vertical section through portions of a centrifugal separator embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentarybottom view of the bowl cover in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a radial section through portions 0f a bowl and bowl cover showing another embodiment of my invention.

In the illustrated embodiment, the bowl of the separator has a cylindrical riser wallA 1 extending upward from the usual conical bowl bottom 2, which bottom has a hollow central hub 3 socketed on the upper end of the vertical spindle 4 which rotates the bowl, and which bottom' also has intermediate of its height an upwardly facing annular shoulder Seated with its mouth on this shoulder is an inverted funnel-like liquid supply tube which has the major part of its boreV freely spaced from the bowl bottom and which has outlet apertures 6 in its larger diametered lower part. This liquid supply tube also has near the juncture of itsk downwardly flaring lower part 5A with its upwardly tapering stem 5 an upwardly facing annular shoulder 8, and this shoulder supports a disk-carrying tube 9, the bore of this tube'being such that it fits closely against the tubular stem 7 adjacent to the shoulder 8 but otherwise is freely spaced from the said stem.

Downwardly flaring and vertically spaced annular disks 10 are secured at their inner edges to the outer face of the tube 9, and this tube has perforations 11 between the uppermost disk 10A and next lower disk 10 for connect-ing the bore of the-tube 9 with the spaces 12 between the disks. The disks 10 desirably have their outer edge portions turned out to ext-end horizontally and have alined perforations 13 through which the lighter separate liquid portion can pass upwardly.

The tube 9 extends upward beyond the uppermost disk 10A, and this disk has an upwardly extending duct 19 on it to afford an outlet for the separated heavier liquid portion. The uppermost disk 10A together with the duct 19 are detachably supported by the tube 9, and the uppermost disk 10A is imperforate.

Fitted at its lower end to the mouth of the aforesaid bowl 1 which bowl is of con* siderably greater interior diameter than the desirably uniform diameter of the disks 10 and 14) is a bowl cover 16 which tapers upwardly at the same 4angle as all of the said into the bowl below this flange. A clamping.

ring 20 threaded on the exterior of the bowl adjacent to its mouth has an inwardly directed flange 21y overhanging the cover flange 18 and clamps the cover tightly down on the bowl, a sealed joint being secured by a packing ring 22 interposed between the bowl wall f 1 and the tubiilar downward extension 24 on the cover.

Projecting radially inward from the cover are a seriesv of webs 23 which desirably extend upwards substantially to the bore of the tubular discharge outlet 17 of the cover and which webs are continued downward by web extensions 25 extending alongside a number of the uppermost disks. These webs 23 preferably are uniformly spaced circumferentially of the cover and extend in planes radial of the cover as shown in Fig. 2, and each web 23 desirably has its inner Aedge formed to extend close to the top of the top disk 10A. Each web also has a downward web extension 25 extending inwardly close to the peripheral edges of the said other upper disks and outwardly to the tubular down ward extension 24 on the cover.

When such a separator is used with milk entering the bore of the liquid supply tube 5 from a supply pipe 26, this milk flows downward alongside the hub 3 and upward (as indicated by the arrow 27) through the perforations 13 into the spaces between the disks, and the cream passes through the perforations 13 into the bore of the tube 9 for dis-v n charge through the usual cream outlet 28 in the top of that tube.

The relatively heavier milk which is projected centrifugally outward from spaces between the disks which have their outer edges -below the web extensions 25 is free to circulate in the outer portion of the bowl below those extensions, so as to distribute with ci rcumferential uniformity. So also, since this annular space is free of all obstructions, any sediment or other impurities which settle to the bottom of the lbowl will distribute itself uniformly.

As milk is pushed up along the bore wall 1 by the pressure of milk behind it, this rising distributed with circumferential uniformity Moreover, the depending cover flange 24 radially contracts the width of the annular space 29 between the disks and the disk housing which housing is formed jointly by the bowl and the cover member, thereby any remaining tendency toward a spiral orI eddy-like movement is further checked while l the milk passes between the cover webs 23 to the milk discharge outlet 17, since these cover webs converge toward that outlet as shown in Fig. 2. Consequently, the milk is by the time it reaches this discharge outlet and issues from the latter ina steady flow entirely free from pulsations. so that my separator is in no way unbalanced during its operation.

In practice, the effective radial reduction of the annular vspace 29 between the -peripheral wall of the housing and the outer edges of the disksis desirably formed by a. tubular portion 24 extending downwardly from the main and upwardly tapering` part 16 of the cover, which tubular portion telescopes` into the mouth of the bowl and has the web extensions 25 integral with it. I also desirablv make the webs 23 of less width radially of the cover member than the web extensions 25, so as to enhance the above recited effect of checking any tendency toward spiral movenients of the milk. p

However, I do not wish to be limited to these or other details of the construction and arrangement heretofore described, since many changes might he made without departing either from the spirit of my invention or from the appended claims.

For example, the contracting of the upper portion of the annular space 29 in the bowl may be afforded by providing the riser wall 1 of the bowl with a thickened upper portion 30. as shown in Fig. 3, in which case the web extensions 31 can have their outer edges slidably fitting the bore 'of the said thickened upper portion. With either embodiment, the web assembly is entirely cari'ied by the cover member, so that the channel-like spaces between the web members (each of which consists of one web and the corresponding web extension) can readily be cleaned when the cover member is detached and inverted. f

Such a detacliing of the cover member permits the disk, assembly to be lifted out of the bowl; and in either one of the illustrated forms, the bowl then can easily be cleaned, vsince `it is free of obstructions.

I claim as my invention: v .l l. In an upright centrifugal separator, a

rotating housing having a vertical anis and including a cover having aii outlet at its top, va plurality of vertically spaced disks disposed withiii the housing, each disk having its periphery freely spaced from the inner wall of the said housing, and radial web menibers depending from the 'cov-er and extending inwardly of the housing to the top of the uppermost disk andsubstantially to the peripheryof a plurality of upper disks, the said web members having their lower ends terminating above the peripheries of a. plurality of disks.

2. In an upright centrifugal separator, a-

rotating housing having a vertical axis and having an outlet at its top, a plurality of vertically spaced` `disks disposed within the housing and each having its periphery freely spaced from the inner wall of the said housing, and uniformly spaced radial web members extending downwardly and inwardly from the top of the housing and radially inward to -the top of the uppermost ,disk and substantially to the periphery of a. plurality of-upper disks, the said web members having their lower ends terminating above the periplieries of the majority of the disks.

3. A centrifugal separator as per claim l, in which the disks areof uniform diameter and are laterally housed by a tubular wall of the housing, the said wall having a smaller diametered bore opposite the said plurality of iipper disks than opposite the relatively lower disks. i

4. Acentrifugal separator including in upright coaxial disposition a housing having an upwardly tapering top portion and a cylindrical peripheral riser wall portion extending downwardly from the outer edge of the said top portion, a plurality of vertically spaced disks supported within the. housing and having their peripheries spaced lradially from the interior of the housing: in

combination 'with radial and spaced web members each extending inwardly ofv the housing from'both the said tapering top portion and the upper portion of the said cylindrical wall portion to a plurality of the upper disks, each such web member being fast on a part of the housing and` having its general plane radial of the housing.

5. A centrifugal separator as per claim 4, in which the cross-sectional arca of the spaces bounded by the housing of the disks and each two consecutive web members decreases progressively upwards.

6. A centrifugal separator including in upright coaxial disposition a housing an upwardly tapering top portion and a cylindrical peripheral riser wall portion extending downwardly from the outer edge of the said top portion, a plurality of vertically spaced disks supported Within the housing and having their peripheries spaced radially from the interior of the housing; in combination with spaced web members each extending inwardly of the housing and in a general plane radial of the housing; each web member including a vweb extending along the int-erior of the said tapering top portion and reaching substantiallyto the' top of the up- 10 permost one of the disks, and a web exten- 4 sion extending downward along the interior of the peripheral wall portion of the housing and reaching substantially to the peripheries of a plurality of upper disks; each such 115 web extension having its lower end above a plurality of the disks to leave an unobstructed space between the peripheries of the latter disks and the laterally adjacent parts of the said riser wall of the housing.' u 7. A centrifugal separator as per claim 6, in which the tapering top portlon of the housing is spaced from the uppermost disk by a less distance than the spacing of the peripheries of the said plurality of upper 25 disks from the peripheral wall portion of the housing.

8. A centrifugal separator as per claim 6, in which the tapering top portion of the housing is spaced from the uppermost disk 4J- by a less distance than the spacing of the peripheries of the said plurality of upper disks from the peripheral wall portion of the housing, and in which the peripheral wall portion of the housing is formed to a'ord a 35 wider spacing radially of the housing between that wall portion and the disks below the said plurality disks than between the said peripheral wall portion and the said plurality of disks. q 9. A centrifugal separator as per claim l, in which the cover-'tapers upwardly and has a tubular outlet at its upper end, and in which each web member extends upward continuously in the same general plane radially of the disks substantially to the said outlet.

'Signed at Oelde in Westfalen, Germany,

December 20, 1929,

CARL SCHMITZ. 

